THEY WROTE IT: SMUGGLING DOWN POST 9/11

- - At least 100 tonnes of hashish, 15 tonnes of cocaine, and six tonnes of
liquid hashish are smuggled into Canada yearly. Production of marijuana is
about 800 tonnes. One to two tonnes of heroin are required annually to meet
the demand by the Canadian heroin user population.

- - Drug trafficking remains the principal source of revenue for most
organized crime groups. In Canada, the drug trade has the potential to
generate criminal proceeds of more than $4 billion at the wholesale level
and $18 billion at street level.

- - Seizures of ecstasy (MDMA) tablets in Canada totalled over 1.8 million in
2001 and over 2 million in 2000, a fivefold increase from 1999.

- - Large lots of pseudoephedrine originating from Canadian companies have
been discovered in or en route to methamphetamine "super labs" in California.

- - Italian-based organized crime is involved in upper-echelon importation
and distribution of many drugs. Asian-based groups have maintained their
role in heroin trafficking, have continued their expansion into the cocaine
trade and have made considerable inroads into synthetic drug trafficking
and marijuana cultivation.

Colombian-based traffickers still control much of the cocaine trade in
Eastern and Central Canada. Outlaw motorcycle gangs play a major role in
the importation and distribution of cannabis, cocaine and synthetic drugs.

Following the terrorist attacks, the amounts of drugs seized at airports
and border crossings decreased considerably.

Since travellers were being subjected to closer scrutiny, Customs reported
a greater number of drug seizure incidents at the border, but not in the
quantity of drugs seized. Customs were finding more personal possession
quantities of drugs.

In fact, total amounts of drugs seized are down at ports of entry on both
sides of the border since Sept. 11.

But smuggling activity is gradually returning to previous levels.

- -- Most recent drug figures from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police